The Master Is Remastered
Piano Man by Billy Joel
One of my favorite collections of tunes has to be Billy Joel's second album: Piano Man. Since my love affair with Billy began (back in junior high), I've managed to wear out two cassette tape versions of Joel's Piano Man, and last year purchased the re-mastered two CD set.
Joel is well known for his mastery on the piano, and while it may be lesser acknowledged, is also accomplished at multiple other instruments. He has a pleasant (yet unremarkable) voice that is well within most vocal ranges, allowing fans to easily sing along with his tunes.
Each track within Piano Man tells a story. Each song is a unique tale that Joel weaves around the listener; stories about love, stories about lost love, stories about life, and stories about outlaws. Here's a run down of the entire track listing, a brief synopsis of the song, and an editorial comment or two just to keep you interested.
Travelin' Prayer
This opening cut will get your toes tapping with a rockabilly style and banjo/piano battle that is unqualified. Uh, that would be a musical battle; no instruments were maimed, tortured, or smashed during the making of this album to the best of my knowledge. My 7-year-old son loves this song; if he is misbehaving in the car, I turn it on and see instant improvement in his behavior. "Music hath charms."
Story: A song from a man who "don't know how to pray" asking the higher being to watch over his sweetheart until she returns home safely.
Piano Man
The title track is widely recognized and never grows tiresome. "Classic rock" stations still play this tune as a mainstay, and the piano solos are unmatched. Joel's harmonica performance only proves that he is an accomplished and talented musician. A slow waltz, a cadence that is unusual in rock and roll. Easy to dance to when you are dusting or vacuuming (turn up the volume).
Story: Biographical in nature, perhaps. Piano Man tells the story of a piano bar player, and the other main figures that hang out at the bar where he plays.
Ain't No Crime
Grammatically correct or not, it's a fun dissertation on having a good time, in spite of it all. A little bit of honky-tonk coupled with a gospel-like background help illustrate the balance of partying versus "being good".
Story: The Gospel According to Billy states that there's nothing wrong with having a little fun. (Might want to just check out the lyrics to Somewhere Along the Line before going TOO far, though!)
You're My Home
I tried to get my sister to let me sing this at her wedding, but she opted out for pure country (bleh) instead. An easy-flowing ballad with lyrics that float off the tongue. While I love You're My Home, there's just a bit too much of a twang to it; I keep expecting some un-creative genius from Nashville to cover this song, but haven't seen it happen yet.
Story: No matter where I am, no matter where I go, if you are there, I am home. Pure and simple.
The Ballad of Billy the Kid
This song (and maybe it's intentional) always makes me think of Grofe's Grand Canyon Suite. It starts out with a slightly sweet tune that's accompanied by the clip-clop of a horse's hooves. After the first few bars, a full orchestra is added and it becomes, like Billy the Kid, larger than life. The western flavor in this track compliments the theme perfectly.
Story: A romanticized account of the original outlaw, ending with the last verse comparison to a modern day "hood". It's obvious that in Joel's estimation, there is no comparison; kids now-a-days are just punks compared to the real outlaws.
Worse Comes to Worse
According to the official record, I've misquoted the lyrics to this song for years. I don't care, I still think they're a perfect statement on life:
Fun ain't easy if it's free
Too many people got a hold on me
I always thought it was "Fun ain't easy if it ain't free". Oh well, it's still a good tune, simply because it's fun and bouncy and has some great harmonies in the middle.
Story: No matter the situation, the singer "knows a woman in New Mexico" who can evidently solve all of his problems.
Stop in Nevada
When I first heard this song (remember, it was when I was in junior high school), I didn't get the implication of a wife who is leaving her husband, going to California, and making a little stop in Nevada. Duh. Well, I can blame that naiveté on growing up in suburbia where (and when) divorce was still a stigma.
Story: A wife is dissatisfied with her husband and with her life, and runs away. The little stop in Nevada refers to a quickie divorce she obtains prior to starting over again with her new life.
If I Only Had the Words (To Tell You)
A smooth and strong ballad, with lots of piano, Joel croons this one out with the best of them. I do too, when I'm cruising down the highway with my windows wide open.
Story: Purely a love song; Joel tries to find the words to relay the depth of his feeling for the woman he loves, but doesn't want to use an old cliché. (Side note to Dale, Marillion wasn't the first to claim this.)
Somewhere Along the Line
Most of the songs in this collection have great piano parts (being a Billy Joel album, you have to expect that), but I truly enjoy the transition in this piece from simplicity to big production. The dynamics are quite distinct; in the first verse, the piano is light background. By the time you hit the last verse, the piano part has become chords repeated in octaves that emphasize the lyrics, and are pronounced in their volume and necessity to the song.
Story: The hazards of life (alcohol, cigarettes, women, and age) will eventually catch up to you ("Well, you know you're gonna get me, somewhere along the line").
I love the last verse of this song for it's pure imagery:
Well, it's good to be a young man, and to live the way you please
Yes, a young man is the king of every kingdom that he sees.
There's an old and feeble man not far behind.
Yes, and it surely will catch up to him, somewhere along the line.
Captain Jack
If you are easily embarrassed, don't listen to (or at least don't sing along with) this song in front of anyone else. There's a reference to nose-picking and one to masturbation that may cause you to blush.
Listen carefully in this song for an unexpected chord change and resolution. It's only heard during the first verse (I've bolded the lyric where the questionable chord lies - "You'd like to find a little hole in the ground"); I don't think it's a mistake, but the progression never happens again (in subsequent verses, it resolves the way you expect it to). From a musician's point of view, it's an interesting sequence.
Story: A loosely disguised drug song which outlines the wasted life of a loser who just can't seem to get his life together.
Nearly 30 years after its release (1973), Piano Man remains one of my favorite CDs to listen to, sing along with, calm my children with, and do housework to. A timeless rock classic with no noticeable defects.
